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LeBron James weathers Game 1 scrutiny: 'I'm not hiding'

SAN ANTONIO – LeBron James had a restless night's sleep, lingering soreness and a bummed-out disposition. A day after James suffered from painful leg cramps that prevented him from playing the final three

SAN ANTONIO — LeBron James had a restless night's sleep, lingering soreness and a bummed-out disposition.

A day after James suffered from painful leg cramps that prevented him from playing the final three minutes, 59 seconds of the San Antonio Spurs' 110-95 victory vs. the Miami Heat in Game 1 of the NBA Finals, he bemoaned his absence.

"For obvious reasons, I was angry (and) I was disappointed in myself," James said. "I did everything that I needed to do to prepare for this game, prepare for this moment and to feel like my body failed me last night, I was angry in the fact that I couldn't help my team get over the hump.

"So, disappointed in myself (and) angry at myself that I couldn't be out there where I knew my team needed me the most. That was frustrating for sure."

To help recover from the cramping caused in part by dehydration because of the sweltering heat inside AT&T Center, which had a malfunctioning air conditioning system, James received 2½ bags of intravenous fluids after the game.

"I'm pretty sore right now just from the muscles spasming up and they're starting to release. But I'm pretty sore in my legs," James said. "What I went through the last twelve hours was getting up and using the restroom a lot. ... Between 2 a.m. and 11 a.m. I got up about six or seven times. Obviously I got no sleep."

The Heat did not have on-court activities planned for Friday — just video review — but Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said James would have been held out of a practice.

James said he is playing in Game 2 Sunday.

"I'll be in uniform on Sunday. I should be 100% on Sunday," James said. "Obviously I'm going to take it light today. Training staff said I should take it light today. Give the body another day to recover, (Saturday) I should be back on my feet full go and I got all day Sunday to get ready for Sunday night.

"Don't worry, you guys can talk about me as much as you want. I'll be there on Sunday as well. I'm not hiding."

Spoelstra was less committal.

"Day‑to‑day. It's too early to tell right now," he said. "We will continue to treat him. He's as diligent as any athlete I've seen. So he will take care of himself, get rest, and do what he needs to do and obviously, we will have full alert on it."

WATCH: BREAKING DOWN GAME 1 OF THE FINALS

USA Today Sports' Jeff Zillgitt and Sam Amick break down Game 1 of the Finals between Heat and Spurs, which involved stifling temperatures and a cramping LeBron James.

The Spurs released a statement saying the air conditioning problem has been resolved, is fully operational and will be monitored. Spoelstra joked that it will be 55 degrees in the arena for Game 2.

Attention then turned to what the Heat can do to prevent James from cramping and why James cramps up. Spoelstra said James does everything necessary to hydrate, and James said he went through his normal routine.

"I hydrated as much as I could to the point where your stomach feels like it just can't take anymore," James said.

James has a history of cramping. He suffered from leg cramps in Game 4 of the 2012 NBA Finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder, and athletic trainer Jeff Stotts, who tracks athlete injuries, documented three other times in which James has been bothered by cramps.

However, James refused to say it's a regular problem. He has been tested to see if he had a specific reason for the cramps and tests came back negative.

"It hasn't happened a lot in my career," James said. "It's just so happened it happened twice in the NBA Finals and we all remember that. It happened in the OKC series and it happened last night. So bad timing on my part, you know, and hopefully it doesn't happen again."

Game 5 in San Antonio: Spurs 104, Heat 87 -- Tim Duncan, the heart and soul of the San Antonio franchise for 17 years, has been the centerpiece of all five Spurs titles. (Photo: Bob Donnan, USA TODAY Sports)

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James also had to deal with an onslaught of criticism for not playing with painful and debilitating cramps. Gatorade, ESPN/ABC analyst Mark Jackson, NFL player Jonathan Martin, ESPN's Skip Bayless and Michelle Beadle were among the many who took shots at James.

James is on a social media hiatus during the playoffs, but had been briefed about what had been said.

"What everybody has to say, you guys should know me by now. I don't care, I really don't," James said. "I really don't care what people say about me. I don't care about that sports drink group. I'm not even going to say their name. I'm not going to give them a light in the Finals. This is about the Spurs and the Heat."

"There is no shaking it off," Duncan said. "Your body is shutting down and you're unable to move. Whatever is cramping, you're unable to get away from that. It's easy to say to shake it off, but once it's gotten to that point it's hard to reverse in a short period of time."

Popovich has taken note of the criticism James has received over the years.

"What may be more amazing to me is the way he's conducted himself over the years with all the scrutiny," he said. "None of us really understand what that is. He's done it pretty damn well."